Justine Johnstone (silent film actress)
| Justine Johnstone | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
January 31, 1895 Englewood, New Jersey |
| Died | September 3, 1982 (aged 87) Santa Monica, California |
| Occupation | Stage, film actress, pathologist, scientist |
| Spouse(s) | Walter Wanger (1919–1938; divorced) |
Justine Johnstone (January 31, 1895 – September 4, 1982) was an American stage and silent screen actress, pathologist and expert on syphilis. Working under her married name, Justine Wanger, she was part of the team that developed the modern intravenous drip technique.
Johnstone married producer Walter Wanger on September 13th, 1919. They had two sons named Justin and Oliver Wanger. They divorced in 1938 and she retained her married name.
Johnstone attended Emma Willard School in Troy, New York. An account from a fellow classmate’s journal (Priscilla Chahoon, Class of 1918) describes her classmates being awed by Johnstone and her acting career. This admiration led to her classmates nicknaming her “Ju-jo”. She was active in her school years as she was in the Drama Club and acted in the Senior Play; was an active editor of Gargoyle; and a member of the basketball team, glee club, operetta, and the choir. She briefly took up modeling during her time at Emma Willard as well.
After graduating from Emma Willard School, Johnstone got her start in the performing arts by becoming a chorus girl and an original performer in the Ziegfeld Follies and a performer in the Folies-Bergere. She later appeared in the 1917 Broadway production Over the Top, which starred Fred Astaire, as well as many other Broadway performances. The entirety of her performing arts career took place between 1914 and 1926, when she would retire to lead a more private life.
When Johnstone’s husband fell ill in 1927, Johnstone became acquaintances with his doctor, Samuel Hirschfeld. He convinced her to enroll in some science courses at Columbia University, where she studied plant research. Her work impressed Harold T. Hyman, the head of the science department at the university, and together him and Hirschfeld hired her to work with them in their research. She joined the staff of the College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1929 as a research assistant in the pharmacology department.
She co-authored a paper with them concerning the development of the modern I.V. unit. Their key breakthrough was to slow down the rate of delivery and avoid what was then known as "speed shock" by introducing the now-ubiquitous drip technique. They also conducted numerous experiments that lead to the cure for syphilis.
...
Wikipedia